Because of the lesson learned from the last time—specifically yesterday—staying over at Hiratsuka's house, Asakura did not plan to sleep on the bed this time. Instead, he honestly set up a floor bed.
"Hiratsuka-sensei, your pajamas are a bit different from last time."
Just as he crawled into the covers, Asakura saw Hiratsuka, fresh from her bath, walking leisurely into the room.
Compared to the plain and conservative pajamas from yesterday, the clothes Hiratsuka wore tonight appeared much lighter and cooler, as if even the air could easily pass through them. Those looming curves beneath the fabric traced an ambiguous silhouette, and against the white fabric, there was a faint sense of "sheer skin." It was a treasure that possessed a special effectiveness against all adolescent boys, making one's heart tremble at the sight.
"Actually, this is the kind of pajama I usually wear. Yesterday's pair was a 'spare' set that's okay even if I have to step outside."
A mischievous grin appeared on the corner of Hiratsuka's mouth as she stared at Asakura: "What's wrong? Could it be that you've been captivated by my adult charm? How disappointing—I'm the type who won't lay a hand on my students."
Asakura rolled his eyes and performed a "drop dead" sleep move.
"Wait, don't sleep yet." Hiratsuka pulled him out of the covers. "Help me blow-dry my hair."
Only then did Asakura notice that her long hair looked quite damp; she had likely only given it a rough towel-dry.
"Hiratsuka-sensei, won't you dry it yourself?"
"I usually do it myself, but honestly, drying your own hair is quite a hassle, especially with hair this long... Since I have a laborer here today, it shouldn't matter if I have you help out a bit, right?"
"If you're asking for help, don't call the person a laborer."
Though Asakura complained, he still took the hairdryer from her hand and began drying the hair of Hiratsuka, who was kneeling on the bed. "Sensei, your hair is a bit coarse? It looks like there are split ends here..."
"Eh? In a moment like this, shouldn't you say something like, 'Even though you don't use any conditioner, your hair is surprisingly jet-black and beautiful'?"
"That is a description used for girls in their teens who are born with natural beauty..." Asakura said solemnly. "For Hiratsuka-sensei, you'd have to use the past tense."
"If it weren't inconvenient right now, I'd really like to give your head a good knock."
After that, neither of them spoke. Silence enveloped the bedroom, and the atmosphere became a bit strange.
However, Asakura soon spoke up: "Hiratsuka-sensei, why did you come to Sobu High to be a teacher?"
"There's no 'why' for this kind of thing. I wanted to be one, so I became one."
"Kinpachi-sensei? Onizuka Eikichi? Nueno Meisuke? (Note: These are all protagonists from older eras whose profession is a teacher.)"
"Tch."
"Is that not it?" Asakura said with a smile. "I thought for sure Hiratsuka-sensei was influenced by those kinds of works, which is why you wanted to be a teacher."
"There is a bit of that factor, I suppose... Dammit, having my weird side understood by a student makes my feelings quite complicated."
"Because Hiratsuka-sensei is a good teacher, you're bound to care a bit more."
"You sure talk a good game, even though you usually give me plenty to worry about."
Hiratsuka began to complain dissatisfaction: "Though I did start out wanting to be the kind of good teacher who could understand her students, reality is always much crueler than the ideal... Even when I try my best from my position to pour my heart out for the students' sake, the situations where I actually gain their understanding are in the minority."
She indeed seemed to have accumulated a significant amount of grievances: "Especially high school kids; their self-awareness is much stronger than elementary or middle schoolers. They always have this 'I'm not wrong, it's the world that's wrong!' feeling. Even if you speak logic to them, they won't listen. Arranging proper study and rest schedules for them is just seen as being a 'villain' using 'it's for your own good' as an excuse to restrict their freedom... Honestly, I'm almost losing my confidence."
"How should I put this... thanks for your hard work?" Asakura offered a dry laugh as comfort, but then asked curiously: "Since you always say I make you worry, does that mean in Hiratsuka-sensei's eyes, I also belong to that group of troublesome kids?"
Hiratsuka sighed, and her gaze looked much gentler: "As for you, Asakura, though you are very problematic in certain areas—especially how you looked last semester, which was almost unbearable to watch—you're actually doing alright now... In fact, the current you can already be considered a student I'm proud of."
"Hiratsuka-sensei's evaluation of me is unexpectedly high. I thought for sure you were sick of me."
Asakura said with some surprise as he gently stroked Hiratsuka's long hair. By now, her hair was mostly dry and felt like stroking a fluffy big dog.
"If that were really the case, you wouldn't be here."
Hiratsuka, perhaps tired of being stroked by Asakura, pulled her nearly dry hair back from his hands. "Compared to me, Asakura, what do you have to say about your own future?"
"Uh, becoming the savior of the world?" Asakura said casually.
"I recorded that." Hiratsuka took out her phone, which indeed showed it was recording. "In the future, when we talk about the career path survey, I'll take this out and play it three times in front of the whole class."
"Cough, cough, it's just a joke, don't take it seriously." Asakura gave a dry cough.
Although his Domain Expansion could destroy all electronic equipment, there was obviously no need to spread Minovsky particles for such a small matter.
"If you try to answer like a certain guy saying you want to be a house husband, I'll get angry too..." Hiratsuka declared beforehand.
"Who's that brave?" Asakura couldn't help but admire the person's courage.
"A certain Hikiga... who high-profilely announced his coming out to his family a while ago and prefers to remain anonymous... cough, forget it, let's not mention that guy. What about you, Asakura? Don't you have any expectations for the future that are a bit more normal... or at least, something you can say out loud in front of friends?"
Hiratsuka guided him.
"I'm different from Hiratsuka-sensei; I don't need to suffer just to save face in front of friends."
"Eh? Asakura, do you actually not have any friends?"
"Why would you draw that conclusion from what I just said..."
"Should I call it a conditioned reflex, or an instinctive reaction after spending too much time with Yukinoshita..."
Hiratsuka's eyes darted around. "Anyway, don't change the subject. I'm asking about your own business."
"As for me..." Asakura also fell into silence for a moment, not knowing how to answer.
"I knew it." Seeing his reaction, Hiratsuka nodded with a "just as I thought" expression. "You... it seems you've never considered things for yourself."